Powell: Buying Bitcoin to fund retirement? Make sure it fits plans Average investors are often accused of buying high and selling low. And that may very well be the case for investors who are jumping on the Bitcoin bandwagon. Bitcoin, a digital currency, has doubled and then some since the start of 2017 (it’s risen [...]

KDK Blog Post - 2 America’s Pension Bomb: Illinois Is Just the Start We’ve been hearing it for years: America’s public pensions are a ticking time bomb. Well, at long last, the state of Illinois is about to expose just how big this blowup could be. As of the 2015 fiscal year, Illinois had promised [...]

America’s Pension Bomb: Illinois Is Just the Start CmcPro1
2017-07-03T16:39:47+00:00

4 ways to tap your retirement funds earlier than normally allowed Qualified retirement accounts can offer great tax advantages for people saving for retirement. Those advantages work incredibly well if you use them to save for several decades and then retire at age 59 1/2 or later, but if you need to tap your money [...]

Almost half of Americans die nearly broke Americans aren't known for being great savers. In a recent GoBankingRates study, 69% of adults admitted to having less than $1,000 in the bank, while 34% said they actually don't have any savings at all. But apparently, this collective lack of savings doesn't get all that much better [...]

5 things to give up if you want to be debt-free Debt is easy to rack up — but hard to pay off. That's why it's no surprise that Americans surpassed $1 trillion in credit card debt last year, the highest level since the Great Recession. However, if you're willing to buckle down, becoming debt-free, and doing it [...]

5 things to give up if you want to be debt-free CmcPro1
2017-06-11T21:23:38+00:00

Why you shouldn't expect much from Social Security Social Security provides the foundation for retirement plans for millions of Americans, but that foundation is in seriously bad shape. According to the program's own trustees: It's already spending more cash than it takes in through taxes today, By 2020, its trust funds will start depleting, and [...]

Why you shouldn’t expect much from Social Security CmcPro1
2017-06-11T21:21:09+00:00

Life coach and author notes that 92 percent Americans don't know the costs involved with their 401(k) plan — and 72 percent believe they're not paying anything. A 1 percent fee cut can help money last 10 additional years in retirement. Fees can slash retirement savings by as much as 60 percent. Best-selling author and life coach Tony [...]

According to recently released data, the IRS has processed 128.8 million tax returns submitted in 2017 so far, and has issued more than 97 million refunds. The average taxpayer who received a refund got $2,763, an increase of roughly 2% over last year. Here’s a closer look at the data and how Americans are planning [...]

The average American’s 2017 tax refund — and how they’ll spend it CmcPro1
2017-05-08T21:15:09+00:00

Get rid of that notion that retirement must be a time to cut costs and pinch pennies. Rather, plenty of people seem to be in a position to splurge a bit after claiming Social Security benefits. Most people are able to maintain or increase their spending slightly once they start receiving retirement benefits, according to a new [...]

Pinching pennies on Social Security? Maybe not CmcPro1
2017-05-08T21:15:14+00:00

When we think about consumer debt, we tend to point a finger at folks for whom shopping sprees are a way of life. But the real reason a large number of Americans wind up in financial trouble has nothing to do with self-indulgence or an inability to resist temptation. Rather, it’s a matter of medical [...]

This is the No. 1 reason Americans file for bankruptcy CmcPro1
2017-05-08T21:15:19+00:00